London sightseeing
5:53 pmHaving only lived in England for two years of my life so far, I've never really had the chance to properly explore London, aside from the odd day passing through on my way from one place to another. This soon changed however, as I was recently lucky enough to have three weeks of work experience in central London, which provided me with the perfect opportunity to get to know our capital a little better.
The Tate Modern
My first stop was the Tate Modern - just a ten minute walk from my hotel (which didn't actually realise until after having gone the long way round), the famous art gallery was definitely worth a visit. The Tate certainly didn't disappoint, and I spent a good few hours there taking it all in: enjoying the views from the cafe, deliberating over books in the gift shop and feeling slightly overwhelmed by just how much there was. I soon realised that in London it's pretty much impossible to see everything, a realisation that made me feel rather panicked at first before I accepted that the vastness of the city just means that there are always new discoveries to be made. If you like art, culture or even just new places, the Tate is definitely worth checking out.
Kensington Gardens
The next day I braved the tube - a scary feat for a girl who'd never been on a train alone before uni! It was a lovely leisurely afternoon with perfect weather for exploring (and once again realising that I would never be able to see everything)!
While I was wandering around the park I saw a lot of people with these mysterious 'Whole Foods' bags, so I took it upon myself to have a little hunt around in the area just outside the park to see if I could find out what all the fuss was about... and it was worth it! Whole Foods turned out to be this lovely market shop filled to the brim with lots of different kinds of exciting, healthy goodies. I opted for some tofu and veg from the hot foods counter which was lovely, but if you ever go be sure to keep an eye on the scales or you could end up paying quite a bit (oops)! The book pictured is one I picked up from the Tate gift shop - a lovely little creative journal full of gorgeous watercolour quotes accompanied by thoughtful prompts for your own writing. Exactly the type of thing I love!
Borough Market
Next up was Borough Market, a lovely gem hidden away amidst the hustle and bustle of Southwark. The perfect place for a spot of lunch, this little spot has a bit of something for everyone.
As a vegetarian, I very much favoured the side of the market full of fresh fruits, smoothies and lunchtime snacks, with tons of veggie choices. I opted for a vegan mushroom burger myself and could not recommend it enough. My mum and I also had a couple of cheeky Prosecco spritzers while we were there!
The London Eye
Of course, a trip to London wouldn't be complete without a ride on the famous London Eye. I'd been on it before when I was about seven years old, but really wanted to go again now I was old enough to properly remember the experience! One of my lovely friends from uni works there too, so this was a fab opportunity to see her for a little catch up while I was in town.
The Eye experience is pretty self explanatory - half an hour riding around in a funky glass bubble - but I'd definitely recommend it for all you keen tourists out there! Try and get out on a sunny day if you can for optimum viewing enjoyment.
Southbank
On our way to and from the London Eye, we were lucky enough to wander along the lovely London Southbank, which has gorgeous views of the Thames, St Paul's Cathedral, the Globe and central London. We picked up some fantastic vegetarian burritos on the way from a street food cart, and on the way home ran into a 'poet for hire' who wrote an acrostic poem from my name in just five minutes on his little typewriter!
The Shard
Last stop was The Shard, London's highest viewing point - another must-do for any keen bean tourist. There were lots of lovely, panoramic views, which I enjoyed with a cosy hot chocolate!
And there you have it! A little round-up of all the fab places in London I was lucky enough to explore. I was based in Southwark so a lot of these places are quite close to there, but London is huge so I'm very much looking forward to going back and exploring new parts as well.
I hope you enjoyed this post, and please do let me know in the comments if there are any places in London that you'd recommend visiting!
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